Noilly Prat Original Dry Vermouth 18%, 75cl

Product Information

Add this little number to your summer concoctions and you will be a definite hit at the next pool party you host. Or try making a pitcher of the Lady Chesdin to serve to all your golf buddies at the end of a long game.

The combination of vodka, grenadine, grapefruit juice, and Noilly Prat make it an irresistible concoction to add to your list of girls’ night drinks. Noilly Prat vermouth was selling well by 1843 and the family bought new premises in Marseillan to expand the business. Claude Prat, who had been with the company since 1837, married Joseph Noilly’s daughter, Anne Roisin. In 1855 the company became known as Noilly Prat, recognising Claude as a business partner. Vermouth is made by first making the wine. Noilly Prat uses speciality grapes of the Picpoul de Pinet and Clairette varieties, which are grown in the Marseillan region, near the distillery. The wines produced by the growers are poured into large casks, taking on the flavours of the Canadian oak the barrels are made from, as they mature over an 8-month interval.

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The beautiful melding of tart grapefruit with the dry vermouth is an excellent pairing that will make your taste buds soar. Invented by a bartender from New Orleans, A Thousand Blue Eyes is made by combining gin, lemon juice, bitters, orange flower water, simple syrup, and Noilly Prat.

When their time is up, the wine is transferred into smaller oak barrels and left outside for an entire year, to endure the seasons. Here, the wine dries out as it is battered by rain, wind, sunshine and low temperatures during the winter. After this process, the wine takes on an amber colour and becomes full-bodied. It tastes similar to Madeira or Sherry. The liquid inside the barrels is known to evaporate during this period and between 6-8% of the volume is lost. Noilly Prat is famous for inventing the dry (French) style of Vermouth. The process was invented in 1813 by Joseph Noilly, but the company was founded in 1855 by son in law Claudius Prat and his son Louis. After their deaths in 1859 and 1865 respectively, Louis' daughter Anne (who was the widow of Claudius) ran the company for forty years until her death in 1902, growing Noilly Prat into an international brand. Her sons Louis and Jean ran the company until 1939, when control was passed to his neice, Viscountess Vigier. She was the last family member to run the company, and sold it to Martini & Rossi in 1971.

A clever recipe invented by Noilly Prat, the flavors of this mixture highlight the smoothness of the vermouth and its ability to play well with others like prosecco. Noilly Prat also makes a red (sweet) and an amber vermouth. The red was invented in the 1960's, and includes 30 flavoring and coloring agents. Most of Noilly Sweet is exported to the United States. The amber was released in the 1980's, and was originally only sold at the winery, though it is now in wider release.